Warriors date Cameroon. . . Munetsi, Takwara out

WARRIORS head coach, Michael Nees, said he will make changes to the starting line-up for their dead rubber Afcon qualifier against Cameroon in Yaoundé tomorrow.

However, Nees intends to strike a balance and field a stronger team for the crucial encounter.

The Warriors will be facing off against the Indomitable Lions in Cameroon in the final Group J game of the 2025 Afcon Qualifiers. Both sides have already secured their place in the finals in Morocco next year, and they will now be vying for the top spot in the group.

Nees stressed the importance of taking the fixture seriously, as it will potentially impact the Fifa rankings.

He has called on his team to approach the match with the necessary focus and determination.

“You need to take every game seriously because it counts on the Fifa ranking. And if you get a better Fifa ranking, you get a better seeding in the next tournament. These results have consequences. We haven’t lost a game so far, and we want to continue like that. But we must also look at other players . . . I will see how we can assemble the team to face Cameroon, and a few other players may also deserve a chance to play. We need to find the balance in the team and avoid the criticism of fielding a weaker side when we lose,” said Nees.

One of the standout achievements of the Warriors’ current Afcon qualifying campaign is their unbeaten record.

If they can avoid defeat against the Indomitable Lions, it will mark the first time since their Afcon debut in 2004 that Zimbabwe has gone an entire qualifying campaign without losing a single match.

The Warriors so far have two wins and three draws from five qualifiers. September saw them open their campaign with two consecutive 0-0 draws against Kenya and Cameroon in Uganda, followed by back-to-back victories over Namibia at Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg in October.

Last Friday, the Warriors surrendered a 1-0 first-half lead to settle for a draw against Kenya which assured their place at next year’s Afcon finals.

When the Warriors qualified for the Afcon finals in Tunisia in 2004, they were the best runners-up, having managed four wins, one draw, and one loss. They finished with the same number of points, 13, as Group 6 winners Mali, but the Warriors had an inferior goal difference.

In addition, Zimbabwe qualified for the 2006 finals in Egypt as the best third-placed team. Angola and Nigeria were joint leaders of a six-team Group 4 with 21 points each while the Warriors managed 15 from four wins, three draws, and three losses. In the run-up to the 2017 finals, Zimbabwe topped Group L with 11 points from three wins, two draws, and one loss.

When they qualified for the 2019 tournament, the Warriors had topped Group G with 11 points from three wins, two draws, and one loss. The road to the 2021 finals saw them finishing second behind Algeria in their group.

Nees became the first foreign coach to lead the Warriors to the Afcon finals, having taken charge of all the qualifiers from start to finish, with all matches being played away from home after Caf condemned all the country’s stadia. Meanwhile, Luton Town midfielder, Marvelous Nakamba, has also joined a special class of captains who have led the Warriors to the Promised Land. The first captain to take the Warriors to the Afcon finals was legendary Peter Ndlovu in 2004.

Unfortunately, both gritty Gerald Takwara and Marshall Munetsi will not be part of the squad for the Cameroon game tomorrow. Takwara picked up a shoulder injury against Kenya in Polokwane, while Munetsi was released from the squad after the Warriors secured their 2025 Afcon qualification.

The match against Cameroon will be played at Stade Ahmadou Ahidjo in Yaoundé. — @FungaiMuderere